With the increase of theft, robbery and piracy at sea (TRAPS) incidents at the Singapore Strait, the Singapore Information Fusion Centre (IFC), has stated the following measures it recommends the master to adopt while transiting in the area of concerns especially the Phillip channel and Singapore Strait.
Masters should maintain an all-round lookout from an elevated position, with focus on suspicious small craft(s) approaching or in proximity to the ship's aft.
They should turn on weather deck lighting around the accommodation block and rear-facing lighting on the poop deck.
They should sound the ship's alarm when suspicious small craft(s) sighted.
IFC says the modus operandi of perpetrators remains consistent with that of petty crime: (a) avoided confrontation, and (b) fled immediately upon being sighted by ship crew.
In majority of the reported incidents, perpetrators boarded the targeted vessels from the aft using grapnel hook or ladder.
Hence, IFC assess that the adoption of basic shipboard protection when transiting known hotspots would suffice to deter potential perpetrators from even attempting to board vessel, without imposing additional load to ship crew.
The Information Fusion Centre (IFC), based in Singapore, serves as the regional Maritime Security (MARSEC) information-sharing hub covering most of the Indo-Pacific region.
It recommends CSOs to inform their vessels to subscribe and receive the latest MARSEC alerts on social media platforms.
1) Telegram - http://bit.ly/Information_Fusion_Centre
2) Whatsapp - https://bit.ly/WhatsApp_IFC
3) Twitter - https://twitter.com/Info_Fusion_Ctr
Masters are "strongly encouraged" to subscribe to the Telegram channel as it allows users to access previous postings.
"Hopefully this will also lessen the burden of the CSOs and masters can receive timely alerts from our channels. We have attached an example of the incident alert that IFC posts on our social media," says Joan Chung of Information Fusion Centre.